


Fashioning Desperation

by Cerberus38



Series: Huxloween (2016) [5]
Category: Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fashion & Models, Gen, I can't believe I wrote an AU like this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-11-06
Updated: 2016-11-06
Packaged: 2018-08-29 09:37:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8484391
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cerberus38/pseuds/Cerberus38
Summary: Hux needs some help with his special Halloween-themed fashion line, but he's not expecting it in the form of Kylo Ren. (Huxloween prompt 5: Halloween Fashion)





	

**Author's Note:**

> Holy hells, this one was quite difficult to write for. Also, I know next to nothing about how fashion shows and the fashion business in general works (it's not exactly an area of interest for me) so I winged it on... pretty much everything. Obviously, I wasn't shooting for something accurate or completely realistic here. And apparently 'Huxloween' has now become 'Huxlovember' for me. Sorry about that.
> 
> Crossposted to my writing blog, cerberuswrites.tumblr.com

“Thanisson, please, I could really use your help.”

“ _And I’d love to help you, Hux, you know I would, but Mr. Snoke has me involved elsewhere and I can’t pull away. I fly out for Venice in two days and I’m only half done preparing. Have you asked Rodinon?_ ”

“Already called him—he’s going to fucking _Prague_! Apparently I’m the only one who’s going to be stuck here doing this second-rate show with a bunch of models who don’t even know how to walk down a damn hallway!” Hux sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, feeling his frustration levels climbing higher each second.

He was met with silence on the other end.

“Sorry,” he mumbled, now feeling embarrassed for his outburst. “It seems you’re all getting the chance of a lifetime in these big cities and I’m stuck here spinning my wheels.”

“ _To be fair, I don’t think any of us are going to be signing any deals this time. Except you. You have the best chance out of all of us to start getting our foot in the door with the sponsors. This ‘second-rate show’ of yours could end up giving us that push we need. I wouldn’t say we’re out of the running yet this season._ ”

“I know, I know,” Hux said with another sigh. He was silent for a few moments, then added, hopefully (though he wasn’t expecting to change Thanisson’s mind), “Not even an afternoon?”

“ _Afraid not. My passport’s expired and I need to get it updated. You know how slow government offices are, especially when you’re in a hurry._ ”

“Alright,” Hux conceded with yet another sigh. “Thanks for your time. I’ll figure something out.”

“ _You always do, Hux. See you around._ ”

“Yeah. See you.” Hux hung up the phone and sat back in his chair, smacking both hands over his face and letting out a loud groan. He had called all his obvious choices now, which meant he was going to have to reach a bit further than what he was used to, possibly even enlist outside help.

A part of him wondered if Snoke had done this on purpose just to mess with him. He wouldn’t put it past the old fashion mogul—he loved pitting the designers and models against each other. Fortunately, Hux was as competitive and as brutal as they came.

It was the middle of the summer season, but it was already crunch time for the fall season. Hux had a month, maybe less, to finalize his designs for the opening fall show in New York, and he needed his preliminary designs finished by the weekend, when he’d present them to Snoke, at least on paper. He’d present the designs in person the following week, provided all went well.

There was only one small problem: Hux’s primary model, Unamo, was on vacation in Lima and wouldn’t be back until the day Hux was due to present. He would have no time to make any major adjustments if he waited for her to return; he honestly doubted he’d even have much time to make minor ones if something didn’t fit quite right. He needed a stand-in, one who could wear the outfits long enough to see if they would actually work and show him where the major problem areas were.

He hadn’t expected it to be so hard to actually _find_ one.

He sat up and reached into his desk drawer, pulling out his address book. Looked like it was time to dig deep and hope he could get someone he could pull away for an afternoon.

 

By the time Hux had exhausted most of his options in both his contact list and address book, he was worn out and nearly ready to call it quits. He had even called Mitaka, who handled a lot of First Order Fashion’s advertising, but he was out of town to meet with another client.

At this point, he only had about two options left, his absolute last-ditch efforts. Well, really, he only had one—his friend, Phasma, who handled their legal affairs, was not interested in being ‘dressed up like a doll,’ as she had once put it, the first and last time Hux had asked for her help. He respected that—not everyone was willing to play the role of a model. And aside from the fact that Phasma looked like she could break Hux like a twig, she was bigger than most of the models Hux had worked with, so most of the time, his clothes wouldn’t even fit her. That was most definitely the case here, too.

His only other option at this point was a rival designer Hux had briefly worked with about five years ago when he’d just started out.

He sat there for quite some time, staring at the name and number and wondering if he should really call him or not. It was a war between desperation and pride.

Desperation finally won out. Hux picked up the phone and dialed the number, praying it was still current. He hadn’t bothered to keep this one up to date when they had split off to go their separate ways with closely competing companies.

“ _Dameron. How can I help you?_ ”

“Good afternoon, Dameron,” Hux said after he’d taken a deep breath to steel himself. There was a brief moment of silence, and for a moment he wondered if Dameron had hung up on him.

“ _Armi? Is that really you?_ ”

“Don’t call me that!” Hux growled, his free hand clenching into a fist. As much as he detested his first name, he detested the nickname he usually got even more.

“ _Sorry, sorry! It’s been awhile, so I couldn’t resist._ ”

Hux doubted Dameron was really sorry, but he held his tongue. Like it or not, he needed his help.

“ _So, what can I do for you?_ ” At least he knew to cut to the chase; then again, it wasn’t like Hux ever called for casual conversation.

“I… need some help,” Hux admitted, his jaw clenching slightly. Thankfully, Dameron kept any witty comments to himself.

“ _Okay. You must be quite desperate if you’re calling me._ ”

“You’re right, I am. So let me get right to it. I’m lined up to show off my latest work at the opening fall show in New York. I have the preliminary designs done, but I need someone to try them on.”

“ _What, did everyone jump ship at the same time?_ ” It took everything Hux had not to growl right into the phone. The sudden departure of one of First Order Fashion’s finest models to Resistance Fashion was still a very raw nerve for Hux.

“Everyone else is already involved with other engagements and will not be free in time for me to borrow them.”

“ _Ooh, you sound bitter._ ”

“I’m… not thrilled, no,” Hux admitted. “I swear, Snoke did this on purpose.”

“ _He does seem the type_ ,” Dameron agreed. “ _Honestly, why do you work with that old fossil, anyway?_ ”

“Not now, Dameron,” Hux said with an exasperated sigh. “Are you going to help me or not?”

“ _Well…_ ” Dameron hesitated, and Hux knew what the answer was going to be. “ _I could probably shuffle something around, but best case scenario, you’d only get me for… maybe four hours. And I know you, you’ll need an afternoon, if not longer._ ”

“You’re right about that. Okay. What about Finn?” Hux hated to ask, but he was grasping at straws here. At this point, he’d take a homeless bum off the street.

“ _He’s in Milan, actually._ ”

“Are you fucking kidding me!?” Everyone was out at the biggest fashion cities in the world and here he was still stuck in the same place. How was that even fair?

“ _Hey, man, I’m in the same boat as you_ ,” Dameron said, though Hux wasn’t entirely reassured. If that was the case, then he would most likely be presenting at the same show as Hux. “ _Man, I’ve always wanted to go to Milan. Hell, I just want to go to Italy, I don’t really care where._ ”

“Why do I get the feeling that if you did, we’d never see you again?”

“ _Aww, lookit that, you really do care!_ ” A part of Hux wished Dameron were in front of him so he could throttle him.

“Alright, I see I’m wasting my time. Thanks for the help,” Hux said, and went to hang up, only to pause when Dameron insisted he waited.

“ _Hux?_ ” he asked, tentative.

“What?” Hux’s tone was sharp, clipped, a good sign of his irritation with the other man. And a good sign that if he wasn’t going to take this seriously, then Hux was going to hang up and look elsewhere, but not before leaving him with a rather cutting remark. Dameron knew Hux could be downright vicious when he was at his wit’s end.

“ _I think I do know someone who might be able to help._ ” Hux’s heart skipped a beat, but he didn’t dare hope too much—he’d had similar hopes dashed too many times already today and was far too exhausted to suffer it one more time.

“I’m listening.”

“ _He’s a freelance model—him and a group of six other guys. I saw a couple of them at a show I attended in the spring. If you need additional models, they might be the ones to ask, though they are a bit… unconventional._ ”

“That could mean so many different things, most of them not good,” Hux pointed out.

“ _Yeah, well, beggars can’t be choosers, can they?_ ”

“No. I suppose not.”

“ _Anyway, they call themselves the ‘Knights of Ren.’_ ”

“What!?” Hux snorted. The hell kind of name was _that_!?

“ _Don’t ask me, that’s how I was introduced to them. They have their own little cult following on social media, actually._ ”

“They sound like a cult…” Hux sniffed.

“ _Something tells me you’re not going to like working with them._ ”

“Something tells me you’re quite right. You know I don’t like dealing with those who fall outside our organization. You never know what you’re going to get.”

“ _You and I never did agree on that one. Me, I like a degree of unpredictability. Keeps you on your toes._ ”

“And I like knowing that my models are going to do what they’re supposed to do without fail.”

“ _Are you seriously still sore about ’05?_ ”

“Dameron, I will never _not_ be sore about it. And look at that, you made me use a double negative.”

“ _I aim to please. Seriously, though, man, it’s been ten years. Time to let it go, don’t you think?_ ”

“Your ‘improv act’ cost us the sponsorship that season! I could’ve been the head of my own agency by now, and instead I got stuck in a merger with that old codger! At least he let us keep the name…”

“ _I said I was sorry…_ ” And Dameron did truly sound remorseful. Either way, it was enough for Hux’s following tirade to lose its steam, and he let out a ragged sigh, resting his forehead in his hand.

“Alright. Let’s please move away from that particular topic. Do you have a phone number or other method I can use to contact these ‘knights’?”

“ _Yeah, hang on while I look it up. Get a pen and paper handy._ ” Hux refrained from his usual sarcastic remark, though it was very difficult, especially since it was _right there_. He occupied himself with digging out a piece of scrap paper and a drafting pencil.

“ _Ready?_ ”

“I’m ready.” Dameron read off a name and number, and Hux repeated it back to confirm it was correct.

“ _You’ve got it._ ”

“Also… ‘ _Kylo Ren_ ’? The hell?”

“ _Yeah, he’s sort of the ringleader of the group. Pretty sure that’s some sort of stage name._ ”

“Obviously. I mean, just _look at it_ , it’s completely ridiculous.”

“ _And he’s also your best bet for you finishing on time._ ”

“Like I needed the reminder… Better hope he’s not off in Sydney or something.”

“ _Don’t jinx it. I’d like to see you at the opening fall show._ ”

“I’m sure you would. I should get going, if I’m going to try to call these guys.”

“ _Yeah, okay._ ” There was a pause, then Dameron added, “ _Good luck, Armitage._ ”

“Yeah. Thanks, Dameron.” With that, he hung up, looking at the number he’d written down.

Well, there was nothing else for it. This was his last chance.

He picked up the phone and dialed the number.

 

Working with Kylo Ren, it turned out, would be both a blessing and a curse.

And a _massive_ exercise in frustration.

Thankfully, Ren was available for two full afternoons and an evening, should Hux need him that long. It was far better than what Hux had been expecting. Ren had even offered to discuss payment later, which at this point was the last thing Hux wanted to worry about.

Hux would quickly learn this would come at a price of its own. As it turned out, Ren liked to operate on his own schedule.

The first day, Ren showed up an hour late. With Starbucks. Because _of course_ he would. At least he’d had the decency to bring some for Hux, but it did nothing to soothe his irritation with him. On top of that, Ren was _big_. He had a couple of inches on Hux, and Hux was not short by any stretch of the imagination. And he was absolutely muscular, a walking hulk of a man—Hux had a feeling that if he tried to punch him, it would hurt himself more than it would hurt Ren. He was definitely not what Hux would first think of when someone said the word ‘model’ to him, and he’d told him as much when Ren asked him why he was staring.

“There’s more than one body type in this world, you know,” had been Ren’s reply.

“True, but it doesn’t change the fact that I was expecting someone with a little less bulk.” A lot less bulk, actually, but Hux was just going to have to make it work somehow. At least he made his clothes a bit on the larger side to start with, that way he could scale down to the model’s frame instead of up. So much easier to take in a hem or a seam than it was to try and blow one out and keep it looking natural.

Ren simply shrugged, but Hux wasn’t going to fuss too much—doing so would only increase tensions between them, and things were tense enough as it was already thanks to Ren’s tardiness.

“So, can I see what you’ve done so far?” Ren asked, setting his coffee down and crossing his arms over his chest, dark eyes appraising—and unnerving—Hux.

“Sure,” Hux replied, going over to his desk and retrieving the file of finalized designs for the opening fall show. Hux had deliberately focused on a somewhat Halloween-themed set, mainly because, come the end of September (and sometimes earlier) many people were already in full Halloween mode. He figured he could somewhat capitalize on that interest with outfits that could be worn as everyday wear or ‘closet cosplay,’ as some liked to call it. Representations of costumes, rather than an actual costume. Seemed classier to him, too.

He handed Ren the folder and watched him flip through it, his expression unreadable. Hux wasn’t sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Hell, he wasn’t even sure why he cared.

“Interesting design choices,” Ren commented, then his eyebrows went up as he pulled one piece of paper from the file and held it up. It featured a design for an all-black outfit, with a modest amount of jewelry that seemed to echo some pagan designs without actually using said designs. The faceless figure in the draft was wearing a wide-brimmed black hat.

“What?” Hux asked, not seeing the problem.

“That hat? Really?”

“It’s a witch design, Ren.”

“The hat’s ridiculous.”

‘ _You’re ridiculous, Ren_ ,’ Hux thought to himself, then kicked himself for behaving so childishly.

“I didn’t ask for your opinions on my work. All I want is to see how the outfits look on an actual human being. It’s not like I’m asking you to walk down the runway in it.” Though to be honest, Hux privately agreed—he’d just thrown it in there as a spur of the moment thing and was still on the fence about keeping it in.

Ren flipped through the remaining designs and closed the folder, handing it back to Hux without comment. Once again, Hux was uncertain which he preferred--or why he cared so much.

“Might I ask why you chose this particular theme?” Ren asked after a few seconds of awkward, uncomfortable silence, reaching for his coffee again.

“Why not? It’s the start of the fall season, and you know how gaga people are for Halloween. Perhaps a bit of a niche market, but what designer isn’t? Seemed like the thing to capitalize on this season.” That, and he hadn’t seen many other designers follow a Halloween-related theme.

“Alright, let’s get this over with,” Ren said with a soft sigh, setting his coffee down once more and straightening up.

“You didn’t have to agree to this, you know. If you’re going to act like you’d rather be anywhere else there’s no point in making you suffer.”

“You sounded a bit desperate on the phone,” Ren shrugged. “Couldn’t very well turn down someone so in need of help.” Hux eyed Ren suspiciously; he couldn’t tell if he was mocking him or not.

“Clothes are lined up in the changing room over there,” Hux said after a moment, grabbing a pencil and pointing towards the small changing room in the corner. “We’ll just start with the first and make our way down the line.”

Ren nodded and disappeared to change into the first outfit while Hux grabbed a binder and flipped it open to the copies of his current designs. Here, he could make notes on needed changes or take something out entirely without having to wreck the ‘master copy’ in the file folder. Saved him a lot of headache later.

The next several hours were spent with Ren trying on several of the outfits, none of which fit him perfectly due to his larger size. Hux attempted to adjust where he could, though he knew he’d have to do so again once he knew what models he’d be working with for the show. Hux ended up nixing a few of the outfits quickly—and this was why he liked having an experimental model. Sometimes an idea seemed good in his head and looked good on paper… but once it was translated into a three-dimensional object there were times where it didn’t look anywhere near as good as he’d envisioned.

Ren was, for the most part, fairly decent to work with, though Hux was quickly learning that he had a habit of offering his opinion quite often, and never when it was asked for.

“So… I got a ‘modern-day vampire’ sort of vibe from this one…” Ren said as he stepped out of the changing room, dressed in a classier but still somewhat casual all-black outfit, large coat draped over his broad shoulders. “You’re not going to make me wear fake fangs, are you?” He grinned; apparently this was his attempt at humor, but it was lost on an exasperated Hux.

“I was going for something a bit more military without actually seeming like a uniform. The ‘modern-day vampire’ is later.” Hux was impressed with the way this outfit looked… and damn if Ren didn’t clean up nicely. He’d come here dressed in a black T-shirt, tattered black jeans, and a leather jacket Hux could only call a biker jacket. Not what he’d expect a model—even a freelance one—to come in wearing.

Really, that should’ve been his first clue that Ren lived—and loved—to defy all expectations.

The rest of the session went well, and Hux found himself smiling a bit when it wrapped up later that afternoon, despite his massive frustration with Ren. Ren came out of the dressing room, dressed in his usual clothes once more. Hux was a bit reluctant to admit that the look suited Ren, in a way he couldn’t quite describe.

“So… will you need me for anything else? I have another day free,” Ren said in an effort to break up the awkward silence that was settling over them.

“No, I should be good, actually,” Hux replied, not looking up from his binder. He missed the disappointed look that flitted over the taller man’s face, though it was gone as quickly as it had come. He looked up then, a pair of glasses perched on his nose, and reached up to brush some stray hair out of his face. “But if I need anything else, I’ll call you. Sound good?”

“Yeah. Sounds good,” Ren replied with a smile. Hux went back to his notes, and Ren hesitated, then headed for the door.

“Oh, Ren?” Hux asked before he’d reached it. Ren stopped and turned back to face him, one eyebrow raised questioningly.

“Yeah?”

“Would you, uh… would you be interested in helping me out with the show in a couple of months? I could use another model, and I’m still not sure who I’ll have…” Hux looked anywhere but at Ren as he spoke.

“Ah… sorry, Hux, but I’m tied up with something else. Besides, I don’t really do a whole lot of shows. I don’t…” He bit his lip, then shook his head. “Never mind. But…” He dug around in his jacket pocket, then switched to another, before reaching into his pants pocket. He pulled out a card with his name and number on it and handed it to Hux.

Good thing, since Hux was sure he’d already lost the hastily written note he’d taken when Dameron had first given him Ren’s contact information.

“If you need a model again for other things, hit me up. I’ll work you in. And who knows, maybe one day we can do a show together.”

“Okay. Yeah, that’d be great,” Hux replied, nodding, tucking the card into his pocket.

“So… I’ll be seeing you, then.” The way Ren said it made it sound like a certain thing. It was a welcome, if somewhat unrealistic, change in a world where nothing was certain.

“Alright. I’ll see you later.”

Ren turned and headed for the door, stepping out and leaving Hux alone once again. As exasperating as he had been, Hux was already missing him.

**Author's Note:**

> I'm going to sound like a complete dolt, but if someone could tell me how to insert the line/page breaks you see in some fics, I'd really appreciate some help!


End file.
